Scope and Contents: The American Field Service (AFS) Fellowships for French Universities Collection consists of organizational records related to administration of the fellowships, as well as correspondence, photographs, and other personal material of individuals affiliated with the Fellowship program.
The organizational records are not comprehensive and include a few annual reports (1923-1939), appeals for additions to the endowment fund (1923), application and information packets (1922-1923), Board of Directors and Members’ minutes (1921-1956), by-laws and amendments (1921-1956), the Certificate of Incorporation (1921), directories of former Fellows (1933-1942), and financial statements (1934-1956).
A large portion of the collection includes correspondence regarding the function and administration of the fellowships. Notable figures represented in the correspondence include AFS founder A. Piatt Andrew, Director General Stephen Galatti, French prime minister Georges Clemenceau, trustee and later president Paul D. Cravath, vice presidents Charles A. Coffin and Henry D. Sleeper, president of the University of Chicago Harry Pratt Judson, and Sections Sanitaires US (SSU) recruits Charles Fiske (SSU 3) and Roswell Sanders (SSU 4).
Other material includes photographs, negatives, newspaper clippings, and personal correspondence related to some of the French Fellows, including Jean Francois-Poncet (1947-1949), who later served as the French Minister of Foreign Affairs between 1978 and 1981.